Pet Care Tips
Halloween Safety Tips
Halloween Can Be a Spooky Time for Pets - Keep Yours Safe!
Think about Halloween from your pet’s perspective: Strangers and even friends wearing masks and dressed in unfamiliar costumes, the doorbell ringing over and over again, flickering flames inside pumpkins – flames so alluring you just might want to poke a paw at ’em. For Halloween, the San Antonio Humane Society encourages all dog and cat owners to consider the following recommendations.
- Check on your animals during this Halloween time to prevent them from becoming a possible victim of cruel treatment due to someone’s superstition or some other prank. If you suspect animal cruelty, please call and report it to 311.
- Keep all chocolate and other candy out of your pet’s reach, and teach your children that candy can make pets sick. In fact, chocolate and other candy can be poisonous for animals. Candy wrappers and lollypop sticks could cause choking or intestinal blockage. If you suspect your animal is sick, please contact your vet or emergency clinic.
- Make sure your pet has on an updated ID tag and micro-chip, just in case he/she does slip out while you are greeting Spiderman or Cinderella. If you do lose your animal, remember to file a lost and found report with the San Antonio Humane Society.
- Confine your pet to a quiet part of the house away from the front door if you are going to be opening it repeatedly for trick-or-treaters. This can prevent a protective dog from trying to bite, and can prevent a frightened cat from slipping out under your feet.
- Keep candle-lit pumpkins out of reach so they can’t get knocked over by a swinging tail or a swatting paw.
- Use caution if you dress up your pet in a costume. Some pets may try to chew on the costume. Supervise at all times. If the costume seems to cause stress or discomfort, take it off.
- If you’re trick-or-treating with your dog, he/she may become frightened or aggressive due to the unfamiliar costumed patrons.
- Celebrate Halloween with your pets by giving them treats of their own—dog treats or cat treats!
For some more Halloween safety tips check out our blog "Candles, Candy, and Critters - Oh my!"
Videos
PDF Documents
Bark! Bark! Bark!
Canine Rivalry
Children and Dogs: Important Information for Parents
Crate Training Your Dog
Dealing with Normal Puppy Behavior Nipping and Rough Play
Dealing with Normal Puppy Chewing
Destructive Chewing
Developmental Stages Of Puppy Behavior
Dog Bite Prevention and Treatment
Dog Toys And How To Use Them
Dominance in Dogs
Heartworm Information
Housetraining Your Puppy
How to Solve the Digging Problem
How to Use a Head Halter
Helping Your Dog Overcome the Fear of Startling Noises
Inside or Out Making Your Dog Part of the Family
Introducing Your New Dog To Your Resident Dog
Keeping Your Dog Confined To Your Property
New Puppy Dog Supplies
Newborn Puppies - How to take care of them
Nothing in Life is Free
Puppy & Dog Care
Re-Housetraining Your Adult Dog
Sample Aversives for Dogs
Separation Anxiety
Submissive and Excitement Urination
The Canine Escape Artist
The Educated Dog
The Fearful Dog
Understanding Aggressive Behavior In Dogs
Why Dogs Bite - A Guideline For Children
Cat and Kitten Care
Aversives For Cats
Cat Toys And How To Use Them
Choosing a Kitten
Destructive Scratching in Cats
Developmental Stages Of Kitten Behavior
Discouraging Roaming Cats
Feline Social Behavior and Aggression Between Family Cats
Indoors is Best
Introducing Your New Cat To Your Other Pets
Managing Your Kitten's Rough Play
Newborn Kittens - How to take care of them
General Care
Allergies in Pets!
Moving With Your Pet
Pet Theft Prevention
Preparing Your Pet For Baby's Arrival
Successful Cleaning to Remove Pet Odors and Stains
To Spay or Neuter
Travel Tips
Territorial Marking Behavior In Dogs And Cats
Unusual Eating Habits In Dogs And Cats
Vaccination Guidelines
Quality of Life to the End of Life (By Alice E. Villalobos, D.V.M., DPNAP)
All Pet Care Tips (PDF files only unless otherwise indicated) are Copyright 2000, to Denver Dumb Friends League and Humane Society of the United States. All rights reserved.